Habitual Fix’s Tim (left) and James

BY KATHRYN STEANE

If you regularly ask yourself “what's for lunch?”, you haven’t been introduced to Habitual Fix. With five locations across Auckland (and a sixth due to open in Takapuna at the time of writing), this company has your mid-day meals covered with its irresistible selection of deli-style sandwiches, freshly squeezed fruit juice, home baking, coffee and more.

In fact if you’re not careful, you could become a ‘Fresh Food Addict’. This is what Habitual Fix’s regular customers are called; and represents the kind of business that its founder, James Tucker, desired from day one. That is, a place people could “come to every day and make it a habit." This also explains how the company’s name came about.

Tucker, who has worked in food manufacturing and was also a successful franchisee for Hell Pizza, began toying with the idea for Habitual Fix in 2006. “I could see a gap in the market for decent, fresh food that was available conveniently through a chain of stores. I wanted to provide cafe-quality food but at a price that was convenient, and that was something that wasn’t out there in the market.”

To help turn his dream into reality, Tucker enlisted the help of chef Tim Benest. Together, they went about planning a menu and sourcing suppliers in keeping with the above business model. “We looked at things from both an operational view and from a franchise perspective – being able to produce the food consistently day-in and day-out across several stores. We also tried to come up with a large enough and an exciting enough range of food that would appeal to the widest possible market.”

After much preparation, the pair launched their first store in October 2008. Located on Beaumont Street in downtown Auckland, it proved so successful that a decision was made to expand the business. This involved opening a further two stores in the CBD (one on Queen Street and another on the corner of Queen Street and Customs Street), and one in Newmarket, and Sylvia Park respectively.

As a result, Fresh Food Addicts can now be found all over Auckland – around 3000 people have joined Habitual Fix’s social media sites, while approximately 800 hold customer loyalty cards.

The reason for their addiction, of course, is Habitual Fix’s menu. This has remained much the same since the company began (with the exception of made-to-order sushi, which was removed after it began “slowing down customer flow and pushing out our wait time”), and has a focus on sandwiches, wraps, toasted pita and salads.

On recommendation from Tucker and another staff member, I decide to try the Chick Fixation – chicken schnitzel, cos lettuce, cheese, tomato, caramelised onion, cranberry sauce and mayonnaise sandwiched between two slices of thick, crusty bread. “This is our most popular product by a long stretch,” Tucker tells me, and after just one mouthful it becomes obvious why.

The Thai Beef salad (beef, mesculun leaves, red onion, capsicum, carrot, crispy noodles, coriander and peanut and chilli lime dressing) and Caesar Pleaser salad (chicken, cos lettuce, egg, bacon, croutons, parmesan and Caesar dressing) are two of Habitual Fix’s other top sellers, as is the Mangoholic Smoothie (mango nectar, passionfruit pulp, low-fat yoghurt and ice). Customers can even add a protein, slimming, detox, energy, immunity or brain booster shot to their drink if they wish.

A variety of home-made cookies, slices and muffins is also available; while in the unlikely event that none of the above things takes your fancy, the company also offers a DIY option for some items.

Much of the attraction with Habitual Fix’s food is that it is fresh, and this is something that Tucker takes great pride in. “Fresh is critical for our business. It definitely has its challenges but it’s a core part of who we are.” The bread is baked daily; the fruit juice is squeezed daily; and suppliers drop off vegetables every day of the week. The fact that most of the items are made right in front of the customer also reinforces the company’s commitment to this principle.

All things considered, many would find Habitual Fix’s success surprising given that it was born during the recession and yet continues to grow. Tucker says this simply comes down to having a good idea, and a good quality product. “People can always do well in a recession. Yes, by and large the economy is suffering but if you do something and do it well, even in the worst of times you can be successful, so we never allow that to be an excuse for success or failure.”

This very attitude may be the reason why Habitual Fix is set to once again expand, with a store at Auckland Airport and another on the North Shore scheduled to open before Christmas. There are five more locations on the cards, too, including one outside of Auckland; and Tucker can confirm that the company has been receiving interest from overseas.

Indeed, Habitual Fix has made a name for itself out of proving that not all habits are bad for you.

Food on the go – who else is doing it?

Other companies that have embraced the made-to-order concept are…

Subway: ‘The one that started it all’, Subway is well-known for its tasty, nutritious sandwiches – in fact, it recently surpassed McDonald’s as the world’s largest fast-food chain. For more information including franchise opportunities, visit www.subway.co.nz

Pita Pit: Canadian company Pita Pit is rapidly gaining popularity here in New Zealand. It offers healthy, fresh food with a focus on Middle Eastern ingredients such as lamb, falafel, hummus and babaganoush. For more information including franchise opportunities, visit www.pitapit.co.nz